White, cone and "Guangzhou destruction angel" are three poisonous mushrooms of the genus Amanita, found widely and commonly found in Vietnam.
Amanita is a genus of fungi widely distributed, including Vietnam. To date, 1702 species of the genus have been discovered Amanita In the world. Almost all species of mushrooms in this genus are poisonous or highly toxic, only a few species are edible, but difficult to distinguish. This genus is responsible for 90 to 95% of toxic mushroom deaths globally.
On June 24, MSc Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, lecturer in the Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology - Biotechnology, University of Science in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the genus mushroom Amanita can be determined by external characteristics.
In terms of color, most mushrooms Amanita red, orange, yellow, white, gray, or moss green, belonging to the group of fleshy fungi. Some Amanita There are also red stains when crushed or broken. However, because some mushrooms have the same color as the Amanita mushroom, it is not possible to identify this poisonous mushroom just by color. "Let's check other features like hat shape, necklace, scales and boils ...", Ms. Trang said.
Mushroom Amanita hat looks like a wide upside down "U". This shape is also known as the umbrella shape. Mushrooms of the genus Amanita, often has a dry cap, which does not appear slimy, wet like other species. Feel the mushroom caps and feel if they are dry or wet. If it's just been raining and you can't be sure if the mushroom cap is really slimy or just raining, leave the mushroom sample and check after 1-2 days, to see if the cap is dry.
Many species of mushrooms Amanita there are pale patches on the hats, that's what makes them stand out. They can also be brown scabs or white pimples on the red caps. Pimples tend to look like small raised dots. The colored patches on the mushrooms are what was left of the membrane when the fungus was young.
Also, dig up the mushroom to see the shape of the base of the mushroom. Using a pocket knife, gently dig the mushrooms out of the ground. The bottom part of the mushroom body will have a very round cup shape. When digging up mushrooms, make a deep cut around the mushrooms to avoid accidentally cutting into the base. Because this cup-shaped mushroom base is very fragile and easy to tear.
“Not all mushrooms have bulging, round tubers, so this is a special feature that distinguishes different types of mushrooms. Amanita“, Ms. Trang added. This part of the mushroom also has an outer sheath, and depending on the species, the shape of the base coat will be different.
In addition, many species of fungi Amanita there is a ring located just below the mushroom cap called a necklace. It is the same color as the mushroom body but is still easy to see. The necklace can be seen from the stem of the mushroom on the ground or must be dug up to see it. Collars are known as anulus or partial hyssop, this is the part of the mushroom body as they grow. This makes it easier to distinguish poisonous mushrooms like them from edible mushrooms, for example straw mushrooms will not have a collar.
Finally, use a pocket knife to cut the mushroom cap from the stem. Gently press the mushroom caps on a piece of dark paper. Leave overnight, and check if the spores on the paper are white or cream. There are a few mushrooms Amanita are not whitish or pale, however, these fungi usually have white or creamy white spores. This is a point that helps to be more certain of the species of fungus in the process of differentiation.
According to MSc Trang, there are 3 types of poisonous mushrooms belonging to the genus Amanita found widely distributed and commonly found in Vietnam.
Poisonous white mushroom (Amanita verna)
"Death" is the nickname for the poisonous white mushroom, which has an extremely dangerous amanitin toxin. This fungus is closely related to the death mushroom (Amanita phalloides), of the genus Amanita. Poisonous white fungus usually grows more in spring or rainy season, when the air temperature is cool and humid.
In Vietnam, this fungus is distributed from the North through the provinces of the Truong Son range, the Central Highlands and the Southeast. The fungus grows in clusters in pine or deciduous forests.
Poisonous white mushroom. Image: Mondo Funghi
The appearance of this fungus is typical with a white mushroom cap, a smooth cap surface, an ovate round head when young, an enlarged cap with a diameter of 5-10 cm when mature, slightly viscous when it is humid. Mushroom plates, mushroom stalks are white, the base of the mushroom stalk is enlarged with a bag-shaped base, yellow when wet with dilute KOH solution. Mushroom flesh is soft, white and especially has a mild aroma. It is often difficult to distinguish the white canopy mushroom from the white mushroom.
Poisonous white mushrooms contain high levels of toxic alpha - amanitin, the strongest toxin in the amatoxin group, causing people to eat will have nausea, abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, then liver and kidney failure, coma. In particular, the poison contained in this mushroom cannot be removed by methods such as cooking, boiling or baking. Even cooling or drying the poison does not dissipate from the fungus.
White poisonous mushroom cone (Amanita virosa)
This is a type of mushroom that is easily confused with the white canopy mushroom (Amanita verna) because they have the same shape and color, they also grow singly or in clusters in high mounds or in forests.
The cap is white, the surface is smooth, the cap is ovate when young, and the head is round and covered by a white basal sheath. When mature, the mushroom cap is usually cupped in a conical shape, and the cap rises out of the base sheath. Mushroom plates are also white. Stem white, with membranous ring in the upper part close to the cap. The base of the peduncle is bulbous and has a root capsule.
White poisonous mushroom cone. Image: Tehran Times
The diameter of the white cone when mature is quite small compared to the white canopy mushroom, only about 4 to 10 cm, the mushroom flesh is soft but has a rather unpleasant odor, turning bright yellow when wet with a dilute NaOH solution. Spores are white, turning green when stained with iodine. Toxins similar to the above mushrooms, are amanitin (amatoxin), highly toxic causing liver failure, kidney failure.
Angel mushroom destroys Guangzhou (Amanita exitialis)
This is a fungus that has been found to cause many poisoning cases in the North such as Son La, Ha Giang ..., causing many deaths.
Mushroom fruit body of Amanita exitialis small to medium in size. The cap is 4-7 cm wide, convex to flattened, sometimes slightly concave in the center, smooth, white and sometimes cream. The edge of the cap has no veins and no appendages, the mushroom flesh is white. The mushroom plates are free-form, white to slightly white, short and oblong, arranged in 2-3 steps below the mushroom cap.
All parts of Amanita exitialis They all turn yellow when wet with dilute KOH solution. Mushrooms often grow in moist, broadleaf forests.
Angel mushroom destroys Guangzhou. Image: National Institute of Food Safety and Hygiene
In 2020, the National Institute for Food Safety and Hygiene, analyzed the Amanita exitialis mushroom sample and found that the amatoxin group includes the toxins alpha - amanitin, beta - amanitin, gamma - amanitin, phalloidin and phallacidin. These are non-biodegradable toxins in the body that are absorbed in the liver and bile, so they are slowly eliminated through the urine.
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